


It's Payback Time

by mos



Category: Lizzie Bennet Diaries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-09
Updated: 2013-03-09
Packaged: 2017-12-04 17:57:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/713450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mos/pseuds/mos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darcy and Lizzie decide that it's time to pay Gigi back for Episode 78. Set 5 years post-LBD.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It's Payback Time

It really was awful.

Lizzie stared past her husband, who had just arrived at her office with their lunch, at the spectacle going on down the hall. Social awkwardness did indeed run in the Darcy family, that much was for certain, although perhaps said social awkwardness was merely centred around the opposite sex.

"Darling," Darcy murmured close to her ear, making her jump, "I have an idea."

"Do you, now?"

The exchange at the end of the hall appeared to be advancing in awkwardness. Lizzie cringed as she watched Gigi Darcy laugh a little too loudly as a pen and several papers slipped from her hands. Predictably, she and her male companion knocked heads as they both bent to pick them up.

"I hope I did not appear that awkward when we met," Darcy sighed, shaking his head a little.

Briefly remembering The Most Awkward Dance Ever, as it had come to be called, Lizzie tried not to smile and instead watched as Thomas Bertram shoved Gigi's papers back into her arms (she crumpled them to her chest) and said something, to which she tucked her chin to her chest, Darcy-style. Waving her hand at Thomas, she turned on her heel and promptly tripped as she strode away, while Thomas watched her go, an expression of what looked like pain crossing his face before he turned in the opposite direction, facepalming as he went.

Thomas Bertram was an upstanding young man, according to Darcy, who had the man's background thoroughly checked out upon his being hired several years ago. Apart from some wild college days and a period of unemployment due to illness, the man seemed to have his life in order, and on top of that came from a good family, was intelligent, honest, a good worker, amiable, and confident.

Except when in the presence of Gigi Darcy, that was.

The phenomenon appeared to be mutual. Thomas and Gigi's exchanges were so cringe-worthy at times that their coworkers had started a betting pool on how long it would take one of them to make an actual move. Darcy had put a stop to it a year ago after it became glaringly apparent that it was a) making it worse, and b) never going to happen.

Moving back, Lizzie closed the door to her office and sat back down at her desk. "So what idea did you have in mind?"

"A math problem," he replied, taking a seat opposite her and raising an eyebrow as he set their lunch down between them. "I believe it's payback time, wouldn't you say?"

 

\--

 

"What kind of a problem?" Gigi asked, as Lizzie ushered her down the hallway, glancing down at her phone in case Darcy's end of the plan failed, at which time he would text her. So far so good, according to his last message, which read: _The fox is in the henhouse. ;)_

"Just... a problem," Lizzie replied. "Uh... I just want to wait until we get somewhere private."

"OH MY GOD!" Gigi exclaimed, screeching to a halt and turning with a delighted grin. "You're pregnant, aren't you? Finally!"

"No!" Lizzie replied irritably, giving her a shove to get her moving again.

Lizzie had been hearing some version of that same sentence from her mother for the last five years, commencing when she and Darcy had started dating. It had only increased after their wedding three years ago, because apparently focusing on your career before starting a family was classified as a crime to the 2.5 WPF club. Jane had already begun the path to fulfilling her family duty, she and Bing having produced one adorable little girl last year, but that didn't stop their mother from hounding Lizzie.

The truth was, she and Darcy had actually started trying for a baby, but she would rather eat ten dishes of green beans in cranberry gelatin than tell her mother or Gigi that little secret.

Gigi wasn't nearly as obnoxious about hounding them for babies as Mrs. Bennet (who now brought it up in nearly every phone conversation and visit), but Lizzie still knew that if there was one thing Gigi Darcy really wanted, it was to be an aunt.

Behind wanting Thomas Bertram, of course.

"Really?" Gigi sounded disappointed. "Then what-"

"It's a _math_ problem," Lizzie replied, right before shoving Gigi into the tiny office -the very same one that Darcy had been shoved into all those years ago- and closing the door.

She had just enough time to see Thomas Bertram fix Gigi with a deer-in-the-headlights look before the door shut.

Slapping a hand over her mouth, she suppressed a giggle. Darcy poked his head out from the office next door, checking to make sure the coast was clear, and she gestured for him to come over.

"What did you say to him?" she whispered.

"I told him I needed to speak with him and then pretended to take a call," he replied. "It was very unprofessional."

Suppressing a laugh, she pressed her ear to the door and after a moment, her husband followed suit. The conversation inside went from smile-worthy to cringe-worthy almost immediately. Apparently Gigi and Thomas couldn't get past greeting each other before things got awkward.

"This is a lovely office," Thomas said.

"Uh, well... yes," Gigi replied. "Very lovely."

"You look very... I mean that dress is... not that I'm... the color is nice?"

"It's cyan. You know, like... cyanobacteria."

"I see." There was a pause. "It's nearly the same color as our basement bathroom at my family's estate."

"Well it's quite... water-like. Good for a bathroom."

There was another long, awkward pause, and Lizzie met Darcy's eyes. If he was thinking the same thing as her, he was probably half-tempted to go in and rescue them both. It really was awful. The conversation couldn't possibly get more awkward than comparing the color of Gigi's dress to a bathroom.

"I'm really sorry about this," Gigi said in a rush, her words mashing together. "It's a setup and it's my fault and I should probably explain because I totally did this same thing to my brother-"

"Episode 78," Thomas said, interrupting her.

Lizzie grinned at Darcy, who grabbed her hand.

"Yes! How did you-? You've watched-?"

"All of them. And... the others. You were very... heroic."

"I think you're heroic too! No! I mean-"

There was a snort from beside Lizzie, and Darcy was tugging her away. They half-walked, half-ran down the hallway and around the corner, barely holding in their laughter. When they were sure they were out of earshot, they collectively lost it.

"He compared her dress to a bathroom!" Darcy gasped. It was rare that he laughed this hard; there were tears streaming down his cheeks.

"That was _awful!_ " Lizzie laughed. "Are you sure you want him for a brother-in-law?"

Darcy sobered quickly. "I want whatever Gigi wants."

"And clearly she wants him."

"Clearly."

Lizzie was tempted to go back and listen some more, but Darcy slung an arm around her shoulders and suggested they grab some dinner. They were just getting into the car when their phones simultaneously buzzed. Lizzie finished putting on her seatbelt, while Darcy glanced at his phone and smirked, then showed her the message.

_YOU TWO ARE SO DEAD._

That started them laughing all over again, and as Darcy started the car, Lizzie texted Gigi back:

_You had it coming. How'd it go?_

_Going to dinner at the marina. ;)_

"Mission accomplished," Lizzie told Darcy, who glanced at her. "They're going to dinner at the marina."

"Excellent. The staff there should be thoroughly entertained. Where did you want to go for dinner?"

"Home? I'm game for leftovers if you are."

He agreed, and as they drove home she pulled out her phone and texted Gigi one more time:

_About your earlier question. The answer should have been not_ yet _. Don't tell my mother. ;)_

_!!! :)_ Was Gigi's reply.

She supposed they were even now.

**Author's Note:**

> First off, I had a massive headache when I wrote this so I apologize for anything that makes no sense, as I just wrote it out and did a quick edit before posting because I wanted it out of my head. 
> 
> Secondly: I picked Thomas Bertram because I wanted to link Gigi to another Austen character, and wanted him to be someone Darcy would approve of, otherwise I could not see Darcy actively trying to get them together. As to Thomas Bertram's character, I realize he wasn't the best during Mansfield Park, but as it says in that book, after his illness "He became what he ought to be, useful to his father, steady and quiet, and not living merely for himself."


End file.
